Dragon Ball Z/ Sailor Moon/ Ranma ½ fanfic.
 
"Past, Present and Uncertainty."
 
By Julian Soullard (e-mail: jnsoullard@hotmail.com)


	Warning: All characters from this fanfic are copyright from Akira 
Toriyama (Dragon Ball Z), Naoko Takeuchi (Sailor Moon) and Rumiko Takahashi 
(Ranma ½) so don't sue me. By the way, also worth mentioning, this story is 
a sequel to my other fanfic "Boy meets girls". In other words, there will be 
a lot of things you won't understand in this story if you haven't read "Boy 
meets girls" (and its side stories) first. If that's the case... then what 
the Hell are you doing here still reading this? 
Go to http://lavender.fortunecity.com/flamingos/122 instead, and start at 
the real beginning of the story like you're suppose to!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 	AND NOW ON WITH....


Chapter 5: Find out.


	"Ranma, dinner is ready," Kasumi told the pigtailed martial artist.

	"Coming!" this one responded.

	With a great jump, he came down from the Tendo roof and made his way 
towards the dinning room. Everyone was already there, eating. Without saying 
anything, Ranma took his seat and started doing the same thing the others 
were.

	"Ranma coming late for dinner," Nabiki stated to no one in 
particular, "When will miracles stop? I'm surprised Kasumi actually had to 
go and get you."

	Ranma limited himself in eating his rice instead of paying attention 
to the young extortionist. From the back of his eye he could see that Akane, 
who was sitting next to him, was doing an excellent job in ignoring him as 
well. She was probably still upset after what happened yesterday. Actually, 
she hadn't spoken to him ever since. 

	Okay, so maybe leaving her at the movies was not the nicest thing to 
do. But com'on! He said he was sorry. Okay, so maybe forgetting about her 
and coming to pick her up an hour late didn't help much either. But still, 
she didn't had to make such a big deal out of it! Not to mention that she 
didn't had to slap him on the face for it either. I mean, how was he suppose 
to know that his chat with Trunks was going to take so long? People get 
distracted once in a while and forget stuff. It can happen to anyone, right?

	Apparently, Akane didn't think that way. She got even more upset (if 
that's possible) when he refused to tell her why he left in the first place 
as well as what took him so long to come back. What was he suppose to say? 
Trunks had made him promise to keep his presence a secret from everyone else. 
If there was something that Ranma had learned over the years was that the 
least he spoke, the less chances this brought of getting himself into 
trouble. This time however, it backfired. 
	Akane was probably thinking the worst things about what he could've 
done during his 'not-so-brief' absence. Most of those things probably 
involved some of his other fiancées as well. 

	Deciding that staying near Akane and her rotten mood for a extended 
period of time would only get him clobbered, Ranma quickly finished his meal 
and left towards the dojo to do some katas. That always helped him to relax. 

	After several minutes of working out, Ranma went to take a warm bath. 
	While the hot water did wonders for his sore muscles, the martial 
artist gently sent his head back and pressed it against the wall, eyes 
looking at the ceiling.

	[If Trunks is back in Juuban,] he thought, [then something big is 
about to happen.]


				<<Flashback>>

	When he went looking for answers, he really didn't expect to see the 
answer itself to come and greet him. 
	In front of him, about a yard away, the figure he spotted earlier at 
Hikawa Temple was hovering in mid air. A man. Long black hair, gray trousers, 
black undershirt and a blue jacket. 
	Ranma quickly took a defensive stance in case the mysterious 
figure was planning to attack him. After all, the Anything Goes style 
specialized in mid air combat which, he thought, would give him the 
advantage in a fight where his opponent and him were airborne.

	The fight, however, never took place. 
	The stranger didn't had any interest in fighting. He just wanted to 
talk. After leading him to a building's rooftop, where they could carry on 
with their chat without calling the attention from the citizens below, the 
conversation began.

	"Who are you?" Ranma asked.

	The stranger blinked. It appeared he was hoping for Ranma to know his 
identity already. But then again, the martial artist was never really good 
at remembering a face.

	"You don't remember me?" he inquired.

	"Should I?"

	"Three years ago," he told him, in an attempt to refresh his memory. 
"I had purple hair back then."

	"Err..."

	This didn't seem to help much. 

	"Trunks. Remember?" the Saiyajin finally cut to the chase.

	Ranma's brain began to put the pieces of information together, until 
his wide eye expression proved that the remember who the individual was. 
Right after that, he started bombarding Trunks with questions which were all 
answered in due time.

	"But I don't get it." the pigtailed boy began, once Trunks was done 
with his story. "Why were you hiding from us back at Hikawa Temple?"

	"My presence here is suppose to be a secret." Trunks answered. "Only 
Sailor Pluto, who brought me here, and Rei Hino, who can detect my ki, know 
of me. And now there's you as well."

	"But why is it suppose to be a secret in the first place?" Ranma 
went on, "I don't think the girls would mind seeing you again."

	"Do you want the short or the long version?"

	"Go ahead with the long one." he told him. "It'll take a while 
before Akane comes out of the movies, so I have time to spare."

	Trunks pretty much told Ranma the same thing he told Rei a couple of 
days ago. That is... with a few modifications, of course. After all, he 
couldn't tell the martial artist about the true identity of the Sailor 
Senshi, so he always referred as the girls and the heroines as two different 
groups. 
	He did tell Ranma about his past relationship with Makoto and how 
avoiding her now would avoid several complications as well as a lot of pain 
and the reawakening of bitter memories. Ranma appeared to take sympathy on 
that.
	As for the Sailor Senshi business, the Saiyajin hybrid said that 
Sailor Pluto had asked him to keep a low cover when fighting the unknown 
enemy (which was in a way true). This meant that he couldn't interact with 
Juuban's renowned heroines. Trunks didn't liked lying, but he convinced 
Ranma that all of this was done so there would be no alteration in this 
world's time line, being that one of the conditions Pluto had imposed on him 
in order to come here. Ranma seemed to believe all he said.

	"So, who is this enemy?" he asked.

	"I don't know, and neither does Pluto." Trunks replied, "For now, 
we're stuck at the defense until we can find out more."

	Ranma had then offered his help in order to fight the new enemy. If 
someone was going to mess around with his world, he had something to say 
about it all. Even if this was the Senshi's territory, his martial artist 
oath demanded that he helped those in need... not to mention that this new 
challenge sounded quite interesting too. Things had been going a little 
slow since his fight with Saffron, and the only worthy fights he'd been 
getting so far were with Ryouga or Happosai, which weren't as often as 
before.

	His proposal, though, was refused by the once purple haired warrior. 
Trunks didn't seem to think less of the martial artist's skills, but as long 
as the enemy's identity and power level remained a mystery, the best thing 
to do for now would be playing it safe. Which meant involving as few people 
as possible.
	Ranma didn't like it, but agreed to keep out of the way.


			<<End of Flashback>>

	[Okay, Trunks. I won't get involved.] Ranma thought, [But if those 
'friends' of yours set one foot on Nerima, don't expect me to sit back and 
do nothing about it.]

**********

	"Hold it right there!" she shouted.

	And yes... the Raiders actually DID held still the moment Sailor 
Moon's voice was heard. All five of them turned around to face the five 
girls who had come to interfere with their work. Or so it would appear. 

	The Senshi carefully analyzed their opponents. Five in total, but 
not all looked the same. Two of them had silver fur while the other three, 
who looked slightly smaller, were entirely brown. The silver monsters began 
to advance towards them. Although they only walked on two legs, the way 
they bent forward gave the impression that they used all four limbs to move. 
The remaining three Raiders quickly gathered the material they stole and 
began to run to the back of the warehouse, leaving the fight to their silver 
comrades.

	"She said: HOLD IT!!" Mars shouted to the three fugitives. "MARS 
FLAME SNIPER!"

	The arrow flew right towards the trio, reaching one of them and 
causing it to blow up like a grenade afterwards. The remaining two were 
near when the explosion occurred and were thrown off balance by the strength 
of it. Mars was about to shoot another arrow, but one of the silver Raiders 
launched towards her and forced her to draw back.

	In the meantime, Mercury, Venus and Moon were busy dealing with the 
other Raider who kept moving too fast for them to get a good shot. Once it 
got the girls attention and gave it's two wounded, but still alive, feline 
friends the chance to flee, it charged straight at the three girls.

	"VENUS LOVE AND BEAUTY SHOCK!!" Venus summoned, once she saw that 
the enemy was running right towards her.

	The Raider dodged the heart shaped bolt by jumping against the wall 
to his right, sinking its sharp claws into the concrete so it wouldn't fall. 
It even began to run on the wall, like a spider, as he got closer to the 
test subjects.

	Venus could only think of one thing as she saw the monster jumping 
right in front of her, claws coming first: Duck. The creature passed inches 
above her, landing near the entrance of the warehouse.

	"MERCURY AQUA RHAPSODY!!" 

	This time, the Raider was in no position to dodge. The water based 
blast hit it right in the back, shoving it against a fence. It fell to the 
ground, but quickly got up, showing little damage and no intention to 
surrender.

	"JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!!"

	"MARS FLAME SNIPER!!"

	A big growl came out of the creature's mouth when the two blasts 
got it. Once the smoke cleared out, it remained standing, but obviously 
wounded. The monster began a vicious attack with it's claws, forcing both 
Senshi to the defensive instead of the offensive. Jupiter managed to move 
out of the creature's range once it delivered a powerful cut with its paw, 
which left deep marks on the wall behind her.

	As the fight went on, and the warehouse got more and more damaged 
along with it, the Senshi eventually gathered up. The two monsters still 
held their ground in spite of the numerous wounds on their bodies.

	"Okay, girls," Moon declared, "Let's do this one more time."

	"Right!" 

	"Here goes the bait!" Jupiter declared, "JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!!"

	As expected, the two creatures jumped out of the way in order to 
avoid the countless bolts which were fired by the Thunder Senshi each time 
she spun. What they didn't know was that this little distraction gave the 
remaining Senshi the time to prepare a combined attack.

	"MERCURY AQUA RHAPSODY!!" 

	"VENUS LOVE AND BEAUTY SHOCK!!"

	"MARS FLAME SNIPER!!"

	"STAR LIGHT HONEY MOON THERAPY KISS!!"

	That was just too much for the two Raiders to avoid. They both went 
to a better place with one last growl. The five girls let out a collective 
sigh of relief once they saw that no trace of their enemies was left. 

	"Is it just me, our are those things getting tougher each passing 
day?" Venus asked to no one in particular. 

	"Trust me. I wished it was only you..." Jupiter told her. 

	"What about the two brown ones who were left?" Moon asked.

	"Most likely got away." Mars assumed. "It's kind of a pattern each 
time we face them."

	Two weeks had passed since the first Raider showed up in Juuban. The 
first of many. For at least once every three days, a group of feline 
monsters appeared in places such as iron and steel industries with the 
intention to loot all they could. The way they did it was rather bold too. 
They just barged in, destroyed everything that was in their path and took 
the quarry. 

	At first, those monsters were rather easy to deal with. As a matter 
of fact, the meaning of such acts was what concerned the Senshi the most 
instead of the actual threat the Raiders represented. Compared to previous 
enemies, these cat monsters sought something completely different. No Star 
Seeds, no energy, no pure hearts or something of the sort. Just metal, fuel 
and other materials which were common in heavy industry. This confused the 
short skirted ones.

	However, each new encounter proved to be more difficult than the 
last. Today's combat had lasted more than usual and the Senshi could feel 
that future battles were certainly going to get tougher as well.

**********

	Hotaru Tomoe sighed. She had lost her group and was pretty much lost 
herself as well. Most girls her age would probably be crying right now if 
put in her place. But then again, Hotaru was older than she appear, or to 
put it in a more complex but yet accurate way, she was also a lot older than 
she really was, even if she still acted like a ten year old most of the time.

	However, this advantage didn't took away the fact that she was lost 
in a place completely unfamiliar to her. Sure she had seen the entrance when 
the entire class came into the museum, but she became so distracted with the 
exhibition that she didn't realize that her group was moving on without her. 
End of result: she was lost.

	She began to walk around the place to find her class, but in the 
end it got her even more lost. Well... she just hoped that her teacher would 
notice that she wasn't there in order to start searching as well.

	"Hey, are you all right?" said a voice, "Are you lost?"

	Hotaru gazed up so she could see the person talking to her. It was 
an adult dressed in simple brown trousers, white shirt, a yellow mustard tie 
and brown shoes. His long black hair was held back in a pony tail.
	Hotaru shyly nodded while pressing her school bag tighter against 
her chest. The man then squatted in order to see the girl face to face. It 
was then that Hotaru saw that he had blue eyes and was kinda handsome. 

	"What's your name?" he asked with a smile.

	Handsome or not, he was a stranger. And Hotaru knew better than to 
give her name to a stranger. Haruka-papa had been very repetitive on the 
subject as well. 

	"My daddy said that I'm not suppose to talk to strangers." she said.

	The man blinked to the response. In spite her apparent age, the girl 
was acting quite calm considering that she was lost. 

	"Well, that definitively is good advice." the man said, "But you 
don't have to worry. I work here, see?" as he pointed to his badge.

	"Anyone can get one of those." she responded. "How do I know you 
didn't steal it? There's no picture on that thing."

	A second surprise. This child was definitively smarter than her age 
seem to point out. Such cleverness caused a warm smile to appear on his face.

	"Hmm, I guess you're right again." he declared, as he pulled his 
wallet out of his trousers' rear pocket, "But I can fix that. Look: here I 
have my driver's license and there's a picture in it with my name also. The 
name is the same in my badge."

	"Your name is Takeuchi Akira?" Hotaru asked as she saw the driver's 
license.

	"So, do I pass?"

	The girl nodded in a new sign of trust.

	"I'm sorry if I sounded rude, but papa told me I shouldn't talk to 
strangers." she said.

	"It's all right, really." Akira told her. "I'm sure your dad will 
be very proud to know you did as he told you to. So, can I know your name?"

	"Tomoe Hotaru."

	"Very nice to meet you, Hotaru-chan." he greeted, "May I help you in 
finding your dad? You seem rather lost."

	"Actually, I didn't came with my parents," she said, as blushed at 
the sound of 'chan', "I'm here on a field trip."

	"Well then, let's go look for your class and teacher." he suggested, 
as he offered his hand. "I think there's a group your age on a field trip 
gathered at the entrance."

	Hotaru was a little hesitant at first, but ended up accepting 
Akira's hand. Well... actually, she only manages to curl her five fingers 
around two of his, since the man's hand was too big for her to hold entirely.
	Akira walked a little slower than usual as he made his way towards 
the entrance so the girl would be able to keep up with him. 

	"So, you're a museum man?" the child began.

	"Museum man?" Akira asked a little intrigued by that use of words. 

	"Well, you work in a museum, right?" she explained, "How is it 
called then?"

	"Well, no. I'm not a museum man." Akira replied with a chuckle. 
"Actually, I don't work directly in the museum. I'm an architect; I was sent 
here by my boss to work on a project. You see, the museum is going to build 
a new section and I'm helping out."

	"Ooooh, I see." Hotaru realized, while sounding like a ten year old 
at last. "That sounds really neat. But... won't you get in trouble if your 
boss finds out you're helping me instead of working? I don't want to cause 
any trouble."

	"I don't think my boss will mind. Besides, I certainly can't leave a 
pretty girl on her own when she needs help." he told her with a smile. 
"Let's keep this our little secret, okay?"

	"Okay!" she beamed.

	"Look, that must be you teacher over there." 

	"Yes it's her. Thank you very much, Akira-san!" 

	"Don't mention it."

**********

	"Proceed, Eron." the Lord commanded.

	"With pleasure, my Lord." the scientist stated, "Now that all of you 
have seen the footage I've recorded during my Raiders last battles, I would 
like to show you a more technical analysis of the Sailor Senshi's powers. 
These are just preliminary results of my investigation. However, I thought 
it was my duty to inform his greatness, as well as my dear colleges, on how 
the investigation is proceeding so far."

	Arlakk let out a dry <humph!>. If there was something from Eron that 
bothered him (among the other vast things of him that he didn't like) it 
probably was the scientist's ability to suck up to the Lord.
	Sitting on the other side of the large table, Sorine showed an 
undiverted attention to Eron's explications. The Lord, witnessing everything 
from the head of said table had his arms crossed in front of his chest.

	"First of all, presenting subject number 1: Sailor Jupiter." Eron 
began, as he pointed to the hologram which appeared at the center of the 
table. "Her attacks are based on lightning. According on the data I managed 
to collect, my calculations indicate that her bolts can easily go beyond 500 
volts, enough to eliminate a regular Raider. Passing to more physical 
matters, her strength is basically the same as any human being. Maybe a 
little more on the 'exceptionally strong' side, but nothing to be impressed 
of. Her strategy in combat goes as follows..."

	Arlakk took notes on every observation Eron did and then compared 
them with the ones he previously had. He also paid special attention in 
analyzing the subjects powers in case his coworker had missed something, 
which he would gladly rub it in his fa... er... point out.

	After several minutes, Eron's speech came to a conclusion:

	"And at last, but not least, subject number 5: Eternal Sailor Moon." 
he said. "Unlike her friends, this so-called leader isn't half as agile, nor 
half as strong, and I really doubt that she even half as bright as any of 
the previous Sailor Senshi. To be completely blunt, I must say that her 
skills are rather laughable. She hasn't shown anything outstanding in either 
tactics, planing, strategy or physical attacks whatsoever. Heh, heh... I 
remember there was a time when a Raider had her cornered and was about to 
slice her into ribbons. That girl accidentally tripped and dodge the attack 
completely. Not only that, but when she did, the Raider accidentally struck 
its wrist against something and broke it. I don't know if that little scene 
was embarrassing for Eternal Sailor Moon or for the Raider but I must say..."

	"Get to the point, Eron." the Lord told him.

	"Right." he acknowledged. "However, in spite of her clumsiness, 
Eternal Sailor Moon counts with an interesting power. It's rather odd to say 
this... but... it seems that her attack consists of a white-feathered-wind 
of some sort. As crazy as it sounds, that attack has been very efficient in 
neutralizing my Raiders. I'm afraid I haven't been able to identify it yet, 
but it appears to be some sort of illusion, which would send this in 
Arlakk's area of expertise."

	"You believe that Eternal Sailor Moon is a sorceress?" Sorine asked.

	"Actually, assuming that all Sailor Senshi are sorceresses wouldn't 
be out of the question." Arlakk cut in.

	"Would you care to elaborate on that theory, Arlakk?" the Lord 
suggested.

	"With pleasure." the warlock declared, as he got up. "Several 
persons think that magic is a power which comes from inside a sorcerer. 
Although true to some extent, that hypothesis isn't all there is to it. A 
sorcerer, or sorceress in this case, uses her body as a way to control 
external forces. The host herself isn't magical by any means, she just 
summons the power from an external energy into her body, which she can then 
shape according to her will."

	"Logical." Sorine realized. "Each of the Sailor Senshi represent a 
planet from this Solar system. Are you suggesting that such planets are the 
source of their power?"

	"It's a possibility." Arlakk pointed out. "What I am sure of though, 
is the fact that their skills are 100% magical. Actually, in order for a 
sorceress to summon the power, she must do it through a gesture, word or 
some sort of catalyzing material. In the Sailor Senshi's case it appears to 
be both gesture and words which allow them to summon this energy they use."

	"That's all very nice." Eron cut in. "But that doesn't help us in 
identifying Sailor Moon's attack in order to neutralize it."

	"My liege," Arlakk began, "I would like to ask your permission to go 
Outside on the next assault Eron's Raiders will perform. That would give me 
a chance to see the Senshi's powers with my own eyes. Maybe my observations 
will be more helpful than my college's."

	"Permission granted." said the Lord, "Eron, when will the next 
attack occur?"

	"I'm currently breading more Raiders as we speak, they should be 
ready in two days." the scientist responded. "Since the two Assault Raiders 
from yesterday weren't enough, I'll send three this time. I believe that 
will give Arlakk enough of a show to see the defenders at their full power."

	"Very well." the Lord nodded. "Are there any other topics which need 
to be discussed before this meeting is over?"

	"Yes, My Lord, there is." Sorine began, "Eron, the material your 
Raiders have been brining isn't sufficient. Your station isn't using its 
full potential in creating enough Raiders to get the quantity I need."

	"My staff is working around the clock." Eron told her. "I can assure 
you we're working at our full capacity."

	"Not logical." Sorine went on. "If so, the numbers of Raiders should 
be doubled."

	"Truth be told, my dear Sorine," he explained, "part of my staff is 
busy breading an Elite Raider. As you know, those don't grow on trees. 
Besides, I can't send *all* the Raiders I'm able to produce at once, 
otherwise, the defenders might get killed during a fight, and we don't want 
that, do we?"

	"Your approach on the matter isn't efficient." she said, "In order 
to collect the material I need, I ask authorization to send some of my 
Sentries Outside to do the job."

	"Permission denied." the Lord made clear. "We can't risk the Juuban 
locals to know more than they need to known regarding their attacker. Your 
Sentries, although powerful, are bound to call too much attention. Be 
patient Sorine, you will have the materials you requested, but there's still 
no sign that we'll need project Dark Snowfall in this mission, which makes 
testing the defenders our top priority right now."

**********

	[Number 207.] Rei thought, as she checked the address she had 
written down with the door in front of her. [This must be it.]

	The Shinto priestess rang the bell and began to wait for Trunks to 
open the door. She had been keeping contact with him occasionally, but this 
was the first time she came to his apartment. To be frank, it made her a 
little nervous. Never before had she gone into another guy's place on her 
own. Even if Trunks was nothing more than a friend, he was still a member of 
the opposite sex. 

	[A very *fine* example of the opposite sex] she said to herself. 

	She quickly shook that thought away. He was her friend, but nothing 
more. As much as she would certainly like a boyfriend like him, she couldn't 
picture the Saiyajin hybrid as something more than a friend. Well... 
actually... picturing him like that wasn't *that* difficult. He was after 
all very... No, wait. She was doing it again.

	[Com'on, Rei!] she lectured herself, [That kind of thinking was 
okay when you were fourteen, but you're seventeen now!]

	"Waiting for someone?" said a voice from behind.

	The girl jumped with a yelp of surprised and immediately turned 
around. She calmed down when she realized that it was only Trunks who, by 
the way, didn't looked like he was expecting that kind of reaction from her.

	"Oh, it's you, Trunks. Don't do that!" she told him.

	"Sorry." he apologized. "Didn't mean to scare you. Have you been 
waiting here long?"

	"I just got here." she said more calm. "I thought you'd be here by now."

	"I had to stay a little longer at work." Trunks pointed out as he 
took out his keys and opened the door. "After you."

	Rei made her way inside the apartment with her host following behind.
	The place was simple, just like any apartment, but nice in overall. 
There was a living room with a big sofa and couch of the same blue color 
facing a medium size television. To her left, an easy accessible kitchen 
with all the necessary equipment. A bathroom behind, a bedroom by her right 
and a glass door in front, leading towards the balcony. 
	What surprised her though, was the fact that everything was... 
well... tidy. If her memory was right, the last time Trunks came to this 
world, he lived in a real mess (to put it lightly). She could still remember 
how identifying his floor was an impossibility with all the stuff that was 
scattered all over it.

	Something came back into her mind: she was with a guy... alone... 
in his apartment. Maybe these were modern times, but in Japan, decent 
teenage girls didn't do such bold things. She found relief when she 
remembered that it was Trunks the one she was with. He wouldn't try to do 
something to take advantage of her, not in a million years! Not 
shy-easy-blushing Trunks. That just couldn't happen.

	"Okay, I'm gonna take my clothes off." Trunks stated.

	"WHAT??" 

	"Yeah, this tie is really bothering me." he explained, oblivious to 
her reaction, "I don't want to wear it more than I already have to. I'll go 
change. Make yourself at home."

	Trunks just walked towards his bedroom as he undid his yellow 
mustard tie and unbutton the top of his shirt. Once he closed his door, a 
very flushed Rei was left alone in the living-room. She didn't had to go 
look at herself in a mirror, she knew very well that she was probably 
blushing.

	[I'm making a fool of myself...]

	Moments later, once Rei finally got used to the situation she was in, 
Trunks came out of his room dressed in his default baggy gray pants and 
black undershirt. He offered his guest a glass of water to which she 
accepted in good nature.

	"So, what brings you here?" he began.

	"Well, basically, I just wanted to see how you were doing since the 
last time we met." she told him.

	"That's really nice of you, I don't get many visits here." 

	"Doesn't Setsuna drop by often?"

	"Very few times actually." Trunks responded. "Although we always see 
each other to check on you girls each time a monster appears. By the way, 
you fought very well in the last battle. Congratulations. All of you have 
certainly become stronger since the last time I saw you."

	"Thanks." Rei said. "Although that last fight wasn't easy. These cat 
creatures are getting tougher each time."

	"Yeah, I noticed." the Saiyajin hybrid pointed out. "It seems like 
the enemy is constantly boosting up its monsters after each battle so 
they'll be able to defeat you."

	"We thought about that possibility also." the Shinto priestess 
stated, "Although..."

	"What?"

	"Well..." she began, "Ami came up with a theory on our last Senshi 
meeting. It made us think that maybe there's something more behind all this."

	"Really? Could you tell me more about it?"

	"Sure. I was going to tell you anyway, but since you brought up the 
subject already, here goes..."

				<<Flashback>>

	"Sorry I'm late, girls!" Usagi apologized as she took deep breaths. 

	"Well, you're just a half hour late." Rei told her sarcastically, 
"We were actually expecting you to take longer."

	"Well excuuuuse me for keeping such a grumpy old lady like yourself 
waiting!" the odango girl countered.

	Rei's left eyebrow began to twitch. Curse the day Usagi had found 
that hair dye on her bathroom! She already began to regret suggesting Trunks 
to change his hair color. Before she could say something in return, Luna 
ordered the two girls to calm down.

	It was one of those brain drilling sessions where everyone tried to 
share as much information as possible regarding the new enemy. Such things 
as apparent weaknesses, patterns in the way each attack was done, possible 
motives. Basically, anything which could come in handy.

	"As much as I keep looking at the city's map, I can't seem to find 
a particular pattern which can help us guess the next attack." Artemis 
declared. "All of these invasions seem to be held at random points. There's 
even factories which have been attacked twice."

	"Why on Earth would a bunch of cats want steel, iron and stuff like 
that?" Makoto asked to no one in particular. "Shouldn't they be after balls 
of string or something similar?"

	"Trust me, as a representative of the feline kind, I would think so 
as well." Luna told her.

	"Personally, I'd like to know where they're taking all the things 
they stole." Minako added. "Those monsters just come and go without leaving 
trace... well... except for all the property damage, that is. But there's 
still no sign of their whereabouts."

	"Well, Artemis and I saw how the two remaining monsters from last 
fight used some sort of dimensional portal to leave the warehouse." Luna 
brought out. "We weren't able to see what was on the other side though."

	Everyone kept on discussing for a couple of more minutes until a 
good and deserved brake was in order. 

	"This doesn't make any sense!" Usagi wined. "We're getting nowhere!" 

	After all, she could be spending more time with Mamoru instead of 
staying here, trying to come up with reasons behind the attacks. Reasons 
which have all been rather unfruitful so far. 

	"Girls, there's something about all this that I keep asking myself 
about." Ami suddenly began.

	"You and all of us, for that matter." Rei said.

	"No, not about the motive or the location these creatures come from." 
the young genius corrected. "It's mostly the way we've been fighting."

	"What about that?" Makoto asked. "They show up. We show up. We blast 
them. End of story, see you next time."

	"I'm serious here." she declared. "I mean... isn't it a little odd 
that each time we fight one of those things, the next one just happens to be 
more resistant against the last attack we used. For instance: The first cat 
monster was destroyed by a Flame Sniper, but the second one was rather 
resistant to Rei's attack. We had to use my Aqua Rhapsody to finish it. But 
then the third one was also resistant to that particular attack as well."

	"Well, I don't see much of a mystery there." Makoto pointed out. 
"The enemy is obviously making tougher monsters so that they don't get 
killed by us so easily."

	"Yeah, like that they'll be able to carry on with their mission, 
which ever it is, more efficiently." Rei added. 

	"That sounds like a reasonable justification." Ami admitted. "But 
still... something just doesn't seem to add up here."

	"Like what?" Usagi asked.

	"For instance, each time we go to a factory to stop them, well... 
we take some time to get there. Last day, according to security cameras, the 
attack was done at 4:00 PM. We got there by 4:30 and they were still there."

	"Well, maybe they were still gathering all the material they needed." 
Usagi suggested. 

	"But there was only five of them." the young genius went on. "How 
much can five monsters carry? Not enough to take half an hour, if you ask me."

	"Are you saying that those creatures were deliberately waiting for 
us?" Rei asked. "Why would they do that?"

	"Yeah, I mean if they wanted their materials so bad, they should be 
trying to avoid us, not confront us." Venus remarked. 

	"Unless, those materials aren't what they're exactly after." Ami 
continued. "The first creature we fought didn't seem to be looking for any. 
Actually, it was just wandering around Juuban, causing havoc. In my opinion, 
it was trying to get itself noticed."

	"A bait!" Luna suddenly stated. "The first cat monster was nothing 
more than a bait."

	"What? Bait? Why? What are you talking about?" Usagi inquired, 
completely confused.

	"Of course! It makes sense!" Artemis added. 

	"What? What does?" Usagi asked again, a little more irritated.

	"We're being tested." Ami concluded.

				<<Flashback>>

	"That *does* make a lot of sense." Trunks affirmed. "I actually 
haven't thought about that. If the enemy learned all your strengths and 
weaknesses they could overpower you."

	"Scary thought, huh?"

	Trunks moved his hand towards his face and began to rub his chin, 
thinking about what the Shinto priestess had recently told him. 
	This definitively made a lot of sense. It would also explain why 
Setsuna didn't want him to fight right away, since she probably had some 
sort of idea all along that the enemy was studying the Senshi. Fighting the 
first monster would've made him another test subject for the enemy. Trunks 
made sure to talk to Setsuna about this later.

	"If that's the case," he suddenly said, "then the person behind 
those monsters might not take long in showing up."

	"You think so?"

	"I think it's quite clear that there's someone controlling all those 
cat creatures. They don't look smart enough to be working on their own." 
Trunks stated. "If the one in charge thinks he has you cornered, he'll 
probably show his face. That's when I'll come in. Don't worry."

	"Well, I don't think we have much of a choice, do we?" Rei asked, 
almost jokingly. "Well, changing to more pleasant matters, how have you been 
these last weeks? I see you got yourself a job."

	"I've been doing pretty well, thanks." he said. "Getting a job 
wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. It took me a little time through."

	"And what exactly are you doing?"
	
	"I'm an architect."

	"Architect? Wow... I never imagined you as one."

	"To be honest, I never pictured myself as one either eight years 
ago." Trunks confessed. "But after the Jinzouningen, my world was in high 
demand of architects. I started doing it to help rebuild everything they 
destroyed and ended up liking it as a career."

	"Well that sounds great." Rei stated. "Does it pay enough to cover 
your expenses?"

	"Enough to keep my stomach full." he told her.

	"In that case you must be making a fortune." she joked.

	"Since when did you became a comedian?" 

**********

	"Hop in." Haruka told the girl. "How was your day, Hotaru-chan? Was 
your field trip fun?" 

	"Yeah, it was." Hotaru responded as she put her seat belt on. "All 
those paintings from the Renaissance were great. And here, I got 
Michiru-mama a broach from the exhibition."

	"That's very thoughtful of you, Hotaru-chan." Michiru thanked as she 
received the present from the little girl. "It's beautiful."

	Haruka's car drove through the streets of Tokyo as Hotaru kept on 
narrating the days events. With time, a particular subject appeared.

	"Setsuna paid us a visit earlier." Haruka began, turning the 
conversation a little more serious. "The time to fight will come soon." 

	"According to Setsuna, the true enemy will show up soon." Michiru 
added. "We need to protect the princess at any cost. The future depends on it."

	"Will I fight too?" Hotaru asked. 

	"Not yet, Hotaru-chan." Haruka told her, "You're our strong card. We 
can't let the enemy analyze you like the Inner Senshi. We have to strike in 
one decisive blow. Michiru and I will go first. Maybe Setsuna will join us, 
I'm not sure."

	No one spoke afterwards. Michiru gazed through the window, her eyes 
traveling along the sea as the car raced by the cost side.

	"The sea is restless." she spoke. "A big storm is about to come."

**********

	"All the Raiders are ready, waiting by the teleportation chamber, 
Master Eron." Arna informed. 

	"Good. Is that no-good necromancer coworker of mine with them?"

	"Yes. Master Arlakk is waiting as well." 

	"Very well." he approved. "Open the portal and let them do their 
stuff. In the meantime, I'd like to see how our Elite Raider is coming up."

	"Yes, sir." 

	The duo walked through the laboratory's corridors with Arna 
updating her superior on every single detail about the project. Eron, who by 
that time was checking the results her assistant had given him, just nodded 
to every comment. 

	"All of the Raider's physical abilities are working at 100% percent 
and it's mental capacities have reached the expected level." Arna notified. 
"We're still training it against regular Raiders, but it won't take long 
before we cover that part and start training him with weapons."

	"Where is it now? I want to see it." 

	"In the training room, sir."

	As the two of them moved closer to the so-called training room, 
several growls and screams could be heard. All of them accompanied with 
sounds of blows, wood braking and bones crushing. The sound of the battle 
grew so loud, that Arna began to consider heading back. Eron seemed 
unaffected by such racket.

	"There's our little baby." he said with a grin as he watched through 
the window.

	Arna peeked through the window as well, just to see the slaughtered 
bodies of several Raiders lying on the ground. All of them covered in their 
own blood. Some of them with missing limbs and some with all their limbs, 
but bent in unnatural ways. 
	What was only a glimpse, was enough to make the girl sick. She tried 
to hold down the urge to vomit by repeating to herself that Eron wouldn't 
like to see such weakness on a professional.

	Standing up in all the massacre, a dark figure held the remaining 
cat beast by the throat, lifting it a few feet over the ground as it tried 
desperately to kick its way free. With one last press, everyone present 
could clearly hear how the Raider's neck snapped, dying instantaneously and 
causing its body to go limp.

	"Time?" Eron asked.

	"2 minutes and 23 seconds." responded a member of his staff.

	"Acceptable." he replied. "Passing to the use of weapons shouldn't 
take that long."



	End of chapter 5...
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Author's notes:

	I had some trouble in finding out Hotaru's exact age at the end of 
Sailor Stars, so I had to assume that she looked around 10, although I may 
be wrong. In any case, mentally speaking, she is a lot older.